What are Scripts?
Scripts are a way of creating short-cuts using graphic programs. In this little tutorial you will learn everything you need to know about creating and using scripts. Soon, things that you did to a picture that took you ten minutes can be as simple as a click away! You should know a good amount about PSP in order to fully-understand this tutorial. First make sure you have PSP, any version should work, and open it up.
In this tutorial I will be using PSP8, but again, any version should work.
Preparing to Make a Script
Now that we have PSP open, let's decide what kind of script we will make. Let's make one to add a 2px white border and then a 1px black border to your image. We can use the script to make our images all done and dandy. Just find an image you want to record your script with. A great thing to use would be neopet backgrounds found here. Just click on a thumbnail and grab the preview. Any image should work. Copy and paste the image as a new picture in PSP.
Before Recording
Before we record our script, let's practice it. Just go to image >> add border. First select the color white (#FFFFFF) and 2px. Add border. Let's do that again, but now with our black border. Image >> add border. Color black (#000000) and then 1px. Add border. Got that? Great.
You should have a little toolbar at the top with a blue O and next to it a play button, a drop down list and a pause button? See it? If not, try finding it in your toolbar list. This is what we are going to use to record the script. Undo the borders we have already done to the image. You should now see the original image we placed.
Time to Record
Once you are ready and found the toolbar, hit the blue O (record) and then start to add the borders again just as we did before. Once you are done, hit the little floppy disk that appears and name it. You now have a script!
Now the script itself is more complex than just a little recorded piece, it is actually a complex bit of codes, but for your sake, let's just keep it as simple as it really needs to be. You don't need to know anything more than that.
Using Your Script
Now that you have your script recorded, let's remove all those border we did while recording the script. Now you have a blank canvas to test your new script out on. Go to the same toolbar that you used to record the script. There should be a drop down list. Find the one you made from the list. It should be whatever you named it. Then hit the play button. Watch your script go! You can see what it is doing right before your eyes! Scripts are easy to create and use, aren't they?
Script Possibilities
Now that you have created your first script, you should make some more! You can make making graphics so much easier and really get to the creative parts faster by making the tedious parts go by in a breeze. Just record your simple and favorite things.. adding scanlines to an image, duplicating layers and changing settings, etc. You can even just download some from some sites, including ours! You can do a lot more in a lot less time with scripts!
Author's Notes
This tutorial was written by me, Shalane. I personally use scripts to do a lot with my graphics. Without them, I probably wouldn't get as much done as I do. I am sure that you will find that using scripts makes life easier and makes graphics a lot more enjoyable. Tedious be gone and scripts come on!
-Shalane, owner